CHICAGO — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced $50,000 in funding to two student teams through its People, Prosperity and the Planet grants program.
The teams from Illinois Institute of Technology and Southern Illinois University will receive funding to develop and demonstrate projects that help address environmental and public health challenges.
“Advancements in scientific knowledge and technology come from innovative projects like these,” said EPA Regional Administrator Kurt Thiede. “EPA is pleased to advance the work of the student teams from Illinois Institute of Technology and Southern Illinois University as they work towards finding solutions to protect the environment and our communities.”
The P3 program helps foster environmental education among students to support the next generation of scientists and engineers working to tackle some of today’s most pressing environmental issues, said Jennifer Orme-Zavaleta, EPA’s principal deputy assistant administrator for science.
Across the nation, this year’s winners are addressing a variety of research topics including efforts to reduce microplastics waste and food waste, creating innovative and solar-driven nanomaterials, building a stand-alone water treatment system that can provide potable water for indoor use in single family homes, and removing PFAS from water using liquid extractions.
The Phase I teams will receive grants of up to $25,000 each which serve as their proof of concept. Phase I grantees include:
• Illinois Institute of Technology — Chicago: A student team from Illinois Institute of Technology will work toward developing a sorbent enhanced sand capping technology to reduce the mobility and bioaccumulation of PFAS-contaminated sediments.
• Southern Illinois University – Carbondale: A student team from Southern Illinois University will create a strategy to mitigate harmful algal blooms in their early-stages by reducing the amount of cyanobacteria, degrading cyanotoxins and removing phosphate. Communities impacted by HAB outbreaks would benefit from the project by increasing their resilience to these events.
These teams are also eligible to compete for a Phase II grant of up to $100,000 to further implement their design in a real-world setting.